Tying the Black Deceiver Fly/Teaser

Two posts ago, I outlined how to tie a black Deceiver that I use at night when trying to imitate sandeels. The directions are on that post. This has been my hottest teaser to use this summer on schoolies and small keepers. Here it is on video.

Mole Crab Invasion

The mole crabs have moved onto the south shore beaches big time, and the stripers are after them. Wade in the surf in low tide beaches like East Matunuck, Narragansett or Scarborough and you can see keeper stripers just swimming around. They are grubbing for mole crabs.

You'll find these along the surf line or where the waves retreat along the beaches. Just dig in the sand to get them. Low tide is best to do this. At night they will actually move in very close and you will notice bumps in the sand. Sometimes they are so thick at night you can grab a handful of them in one grab.

I like to use them on the bottom using a fishfinder rig and a size 5/0 Gamakatzu Octopus Style hook. I impale two crabs on the hook and cast. I like to use a sinker that will move slowly along the bottom (1-3 oz. depending on surf conditions), and I like to keep moving and casting, not staying in one spot. They will catch both stripers and bluefish along most of the south shore beaches from Narragansett to Westerly. Right now, they are your number one bait, and nobody is using them!

Diagram of Double Teaser Rig

I premake all my teaser rigs and store them in a leader wallet when completed. The rig can be tied with heavy monofilament. I like to use 30 lb. test. My teasers are usually Deceiver flies although I sometimes use shrimp flies or plastic, fan tailed Red Gills.

Teasers to Imitate Sandeels

When sandeels are around as we have right now along the RI oceanfront, one of the best artificials to use for stripers would be a fly teaser. I especially like to use sparsely tied Deceivers as fly teasers. I make my own and tie them on Mustad 34007 hooks in size 1/0 or 3/0. To tie this fly in an all black begin with black thread. Wind the thread to the bend of the hook and tie on two black saddle hackles on each side of the hook. Now, wrap the thread forward and build up the body of the fly with the black thread. To finish off the head part, tie a sparse amount of black bucktail as a throat and more black bucktail as the wing. Finish off the head and tie off with a whip finish. See finished Deceiver at right. I like to tie this in all black to use at night and in a light color to use in daylight. I usually pretie two teasers on a double teaser rig and store my rigs in a leader wallet.

Last night I fished one of my favorite beaches where sandeels were present. I landed 6 schoolies on Deceiver teasers(see photo at left). Not one fish took my plug which was snapped onto the end of my rig. That is because the Deceiver looked in size and silhouette like a sandeel, and it also moved like a sandeel.

Sandeels Arrive by the Millions, Fishing Perks Up

Just when I thought we were in for a very slow summer of fishing, tons of sandeels appear along the south coast, and they have lured stripers, bluefish and fluke close to shore. I have never seen the numbers of large sandeels that I witnessed yesterday. These were all sandeels in the 3-5 inch range, very large for these parts. While fishing off the West Wall yesterday, I saw one huge black patch after another move down the beach and along the wall. The water was so clear, you could seen striper after striper under them and occasionally breaking for them. The stripers, however, were fussy and scattered and would not hit in the daytime.

What was hitting in the daytime was fluke. They were everywhere there was bait. Using a bucktail jig spiced with a plastic grub tail, I landed 21 of them, but only one was a 21-inch keeper. I found some striper action after dark with some fish breaking close to shore and some hitting. Fishermen in boats were faring far better as they could chase breaking fish in the daylight along the Walls and in front of Pt. Judith where from shore I could see birds diving and fish breaking. The hot lures for me and friends who fished from shore were teasers (either Red Gills or Deceiver flies) fished ahead of Hogys or Slug- Gos.

Hopefully, the sandeels will jump start the fishing.

The REAL Fishing Report

Contrary to what you find in fishing reports in the papers these days, the fishing for stripers along the inshore waters and the Bay is POOR. In fact, it is probably the poorest for this time of year that I have experienced in the last 10 years.
The Bay has been cleaned out of menhaden by the pogie boats. Yes, it is legal to do this in RI. However, the ecomonic impact of allowing this is just ridiculous since wiping out menhaden allows a few to profit at the expense of sport fishing which generates far more money for the state. With the pogies gone, the big bass fishing in the upper Bay is done except for occasional bluefish. Compared to other years, there are few schoolies and little bait in the Bay and that has caused slow fishing also. The only place I am able to find a few sandeels and some schoolies is Conimicut. Past hotspots like the Bike Path and Save-the-Bay have little or nothing. Bluefish fishing is sporadic as it often is at this time of year, and the few that are around are small.
The south shore is no better. I've had poor outings with a fish or two recently along Narragansett. There is little bait down there also. Not surprisingly, there are few fishermen. You will have to put in long hours after dark for a fish or two.
This is the real story of what is happening right now in RI. I will continue fishing after dark since I don't mind working for a fish or two. Unfortunatlely, I don't see the action picking up until early fall.